International Logistics

International Logistics

Logistics news, intelligence and analysis about the various components of the international logistics supply chain; including warehousing and distribution centers, refrigerated supply chains (“the cold chain”), advanced logistics technologies, and third-party logistics (“3PL”) providers around the world. Extensive coverage of companies in the JOC’s Top 50 Global Logistics listings, including DHL, Kuehne + Nagel, DB Schenker,CH Robinson, DSV, XPO Logistics, UPS Supply Chain, CEVA Logistics, Expeditors International and JB Hunt. [as ranked in the 2017 list, published in 2018]. Looking to the future, major global logistics firms are continuing to make significant investments in upgrading their technological platforms, so they can match the needs of shippers with the specialized capabilities of carriers. The major motivations for the adoption of new technologies continue to be a need to increase efficiency and lower costs despite the growing demands of customers for higher levels of customer service. JOC regularly publishes updated rankings of the major international logistics providers in terms of revenues.

DHL Supply Chain will connect with the truckload freight network of Seattle-based broker Convoy and San Francisco-based collaborative software provider Turvo, startups that have raised more than $355 million in combined funding.

The Hamilton Container Terminal in Ontario, Canada, is attracting business by offering a portfolio of niche services for exporters and providing a drop-off and distribution terminal for cargo coming by truck from New York and New Jersey, and Philadelphia.

“We don’t think about our supply chain as a collection of technologies, but as processes,” Abir Thakurta, vice president of global supply chain for the Atlanta-based furniture retailer, said in a keynote address to the conference. “For us, it’s about supply chain performance. I’m interested in outcomes. If you’re a technology provider, think outcomes, not solutions.”

So much of the discussion around international logistics technology is focused on so-called disruptors and the vast amounts of money behind them, but the reality is that disruption isn’t where the action is taking place.

While some liner shipping parties questions the wisdom of container lines alone developing data standards, the speed with which the DCSA unveiled its first set of standardized process maps suggests maybe fewer parties are better suited for such sweeping initiatives.

A container shipping consortium of nine carriers designed to create common data standards in the industry released its first set of digital process guidelines governing the journey of shipments, containers, and vessels.

Sponsored: Like most members of the global maritime industry, Switzerland-based Panalpina is weathering challenging geopolitical ti mes, while at the same time continuing to grow its supply-chain solutions and managing the costs of doing business. In this interview, Peder Winther, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Ocean Freight, is explicit in how Panalpina is maintaining the right balance.

JOC Senior Technology Editor Eric Johnson talks about what the introduction of three new carrier-developed digital entities — TradeLens, the Global Business Shipping Network, and the Digital Container Shipping Association — means to the liner shipping industry.

A logistics collaboration software provider debuts a new freight payment capability that’s tied directly to the shipment, a process that’s unusual for shippers except in situations where a TMS provides such capability.

Supply chain software providers are using application program interfaces (APIs) to connect previously disparate data sources and systems, potentially ushering a new strata of neutrality in freight transportation.

The 2019 JOC Directory of Trucking Companies is a one-stop source of information for North American shippers and third-party logistics providers on nearly 180 select trucking companies in the United States and Canada.

Sponsored: Digital marketplace Emerge launched in late 2018, connecting shippers directly with carriers. At JOC’s TPM conference in March 2019, President Grant Crawford discussed the plans for expanding live data and the direction from which he sees the next wave of innovation coming.

Increased tariff levels are often not accounted for when shippers secure financing for shipments, one of a range of issues the freight forwarder Flexport plans to tackle with its Flexport Capital product.